-LRB- CNN -RRB- Serena Williams has won 19 grand slam singles tennis titles , including six U.S. Opens and five Wimbledons . She has four Olympic gold medals . For years , she 's had a reputation as one of her sport 's top players .

Yet for all her myriad accomplishments , Williams says one of her `` biggest ... and proudest moments '' came Friday night -- in the second round of a tournament in Indian Wells , California .

It 's not who she was playing , but where . The Indian Wells Tennis Garden is where Williams was booed during the 2001 finale . Her older sister , Venus , got similar treatment in the stands , and her father Richard told USA Today he was subjected to racial abuse .

Afterward , Serena Williams vowed she 'd never go back . She kept true to that promise for 14 years , a time when she often dominated her sport .

On Friday , Williams was back . And instead of jeers , there were cheers .

And tears , shed by Williams during the crowd 's loud , boisterous , more than minute-long ovation .

`` I knew that I really wanted to do it , '' Williams said afterward of her return to Indian Wells . `` But up until that moment , I did n't really know if it was the right thing for me to do .

`` And I feel like that 's when I felt it was the right thing , '' she said of her welcome . '' ... Receiving the love from the crowd here , it really meant a lot to me . ''

The BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells , just east of Palm Desert , California , is n't a grand slam but is one of the top tournaments in tennis . As such , top players go there to battle the best and prove their mettle .

That 's what brought Serena Williams to Indian Wells in 2001 . The then-19-year-old got to the finals after her scheduled semifinal foe -- sister Venus -- pulled out minutes before the matching , citing a knee injury .

Amid whispers he 'd predetermined the outcome , Richard Williams told USA Today that he `` had trouble holding back tears '' given the treatment he got in the stands . According to him , one man said , `` I wish it was ' 75 , we 'd skin you alive . '' -LRB- Charlie Pasarell , the tournament director at the time , denied any racial abuse in the same story ; CNN did n't hear back from him after requesting an interview . -RRB-

Serena Williams scored a three-set win over Kim Clijsters . But she did n't celebrate . She spent hours crying in the locker room .

'' -LRB- I drove -RRB- back to Los Angeles feeling as if I had lost the biggest game ever -- not a mere tennis game but a bigger fight for equality , '' Serena Williams wrote in TIME magazine in February . `` Emotionally it seemed easier to stay away . ''

Serena speaks about nerves before 1st match back at Indian Wells

The roller-coaster ride back to Indian Wells started when Williams accepted a wild-card invitation to play in this year 's tournament , a difficult decision she recounted in TIME . Her father and sister , Venus , still stayed away .

While she 's been on her sport 's biggest stage for well over a decade , the world 's No. 1-ranked played admitted being nervous in the weeks , days and hours leading to her opening match . Those feelings broke out in the open as she walked onto the court , a response she called `` overwhelming '' and said she `` was n't really prepared for . ''

The match itself was n't easy , either .

Romanian-born Monica Niculescu , the world 's 68th-ranked player , challenged her for more than two hours . Still , Williams managed to overcome her competitor and her emotions to win in straight sets , 7-5 , 7-5 .

Declining to reflect on the past , Williams simply said afterward , `` Today was a wonderful day for me , for women 's tennis , ... for tennis in general , and for everyone . ''

The 33-year-old still has a lot of matches ahead of her . That includes more at Indian Wells , whose talented field includes Maria Sharapova and Caroline Wozniacki .

Still , for all her competitive fire , Williams is n't feeling much pressure to win . She feels like she has already won .

`` I do n't feel like I actually have to hold the trophy at the end of this , '' she said . `` I feel like I 'm already holding the trophy . And I 've never felt this way .

' I feel like just being here is a huge win , not only for me but for so many people . And it 's a wonderful feeling . ''

CNN 's Ravi Ubha contributed to this report .

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Serena Williams ' father claimed he was racially abused at Indian Wells in 2001

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She returned to the event Friday night , being met with raucous cheers -- not jeers